This 8 year old last-gen console just got a massive price hike

The original Nintendo Switch may be eight years old, but that isn’t stopping Nintendo from hiking its price in the US.

Nintendo has announced it is raising the price of its best-selling Nintendo Switch console in the US due to “market conditions.” The Nintendo Switch was released back in March 2017, with a $300 price tag. The new price of the Switch in the US has not been confirmed by Nintendo yet, but social media posts show some fairly substantial increases are on their way.

As spotted by Wario64 on X, Target has already raised the prices of the Nintendo Switch, Switch OLED, and Switch Lite. The Switch now costs $340, increased from $300. The Switch OLED is now priced at $400, up from $350, and the Switch Lite is now $230, up from $200. Nintendo hasn’t officially confirmed the pricing yet, so it’s unclear if this will be the pricing across all retailers in the US. Still, a $40 increase for a console that is seven years old is massive.

“Pricing for the original Nintendo Switch family of systems and products will change in the United States based on market conditions, effective August 3, 2025,” Nintendo said in a press release. “These include Nintendo Switch — OLED Model, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch Lite, and select Nintendo Switch accessories.”

The price of the Switch 2 isn’t changing… yet

Nintendo says a Switch 2 price hike may be necessary in the future

What remains unaffected by Nintendo’s recent price hike is the cost of the Nintendo Switch 2. However, Nintendo was clear in its press release that the Switch 2 isn’t immune to potential price increases, stating that “price adjustments may be necessary in the future.” The Nintendo Switch 2 launched in June and has been breaking sales records since. Nintendo recently reported that it has sold 5.82 million Switch 2 units as of June 30, 2025. Within the first four days of release, it sold 3.5 million units worldwide, making it the fastest-selling console in history.

The original Nintendo Switch is one of the best-selling consoles of all time, with 153 million units sold since its debut in 2017. I remember a time when best-selling consoles usually dropped in price eight years after launch, not increased, but I guess that’s the world we live in now.

This isn’t the first time Nintendo has increased the price of the Nintendo Switch. In Canada, Nintendo raised the price from $399 to $419 CAD, effective August 1, a $20 CAD increase. If the early Target price increases are to be believed, it seems the US price jump is far more substantial.